PASCACK VALLEY—Registered voters in Washington Township and Westwood appeared to reject candidates advocating for “parental rights” and more parental control over school curricula such as sex education, and elected candidates expressing support for an “equitable public education for all students.”
Newcomers Heather Perrin (1,476 votes) and Lozi Azzolina (1,315 votes) bested incumbents James Parrino III (929 votes) and Irene Fenarjian (905 votes) for two seats on the Westwood Regional Board of Education.
Moreover, newcomer Jorge Pertuz (1,380 votes) won out over incumbent Stacey Price (1,009 votes) for an unexpired township one-year term. Nicole Martin (1,799 votes) beat Darren DeLuca (1,148 votes) for a three-year term to represent Westwood on the board.
Azzolina, Perin, Pertuz and Martin have appeared together on a flier on Facebook, appealing to the Westwood–Township area to join them as they stand together for equitable public education for all students.
Parrino, DeLuca, Fenarjian and Price were campaigning with a focus on “parental rights” and bucking the state education board on mandated curriculum updates.
The four new board members will join the K-12 regional school board in January 2024. The district, which serves nearly 3,000 students, had been embroiled in so-called culture wars debates, among parents, educators, students, and even outside actors.
Over the last year, several board meetings have stirred up controversy over sex education content in new state health standards, over allegations that some elementary teachers had gone “rogue” and brought up “sensitive topics” such as same-sex parents. Also, divisive meetings over display of a Pride Flag and a Pride sign by an LGBTQ+ student on the middle school lawn have previously split apart parents, educators, trustees, and school administrators.
Of four towns represented in the Pascack Valley Regional High School District, only Woodcliff Lake had a contested race. Generally, PVRHS meetings are much less contentious or divisive than Westwood Regional sessions.
In Woodcliff Lake, Stephanie Mong-Ping Huang (953 votes) beat Jennifer Levison (810 votes) for one seat representing Woodcliff Lake.
All told, the PVRHS District had four vacancies, two from Hillsdale, one from Montvale and one from Woodcliff Lake.
In uncontested races, Hillsdale incumbents Kristen Martin and Gini Varghese were reelected, and incumbent Michael Weaver, representing Montvale, was reelected.
Lately, in addition to political battles over LGBTQ flags and student privacy in expressing gender identity, taxpayers have zeroed in on local and regional school taxes, which generally comprise 60 percent or more of a homeowner’s property tax bill.
Efforts to trim school costs and increase cost savings via shared services and resources have been on many Pascack Valley school boards’ radars in recent years.
In a contested Emerson race, two newcomers, William Graulich V (1,009 votes) and Amanda Riccardi (868 votes) won seats on the school board, while Anthony Khiami (768 votes) placed third.
A competitive Hillsdale school board race had three challengers for two seats, with two incumbents, Christina Jennings and President Nicole Klas, going up against newcomer Michael Kenduck.
Jennings topped vote-getters with 1,242 votes, while Kenduck (1,074) and Klas (1,065) remain close as final mail-in votes (postmarked by Nov. 7) continue to come in before the Nov. 13 deadline.
Hillsdale trustees have been under pressure lately following a nearly 2-to-1 rejection in March of a prior $82.7 million referendum to replace the century-old George G, White Middle School. Lately, trustees held one October and one November public forum, plus breakout groups, in an effort to solicit community input and build consensus for a September 2024 referendum on middle school renovations.
In Montvale, a competitive school election had five candidates for three seats. Topping the field was Rachel Baskin (1,098 votes), followed by John Carvelli (884 votes) and Dominic DiSalvo (821 votes). Others included Amaka Auer (671 votes) and Zaheera Khan (564 votes).
In a school board election roundup, Carvelli, a 16-year resident, and on the board since 2016, said he has served as board VP for the last two years. He told us, “People ask why do you want to do this? I enjoy giving back to the Montvale community.”
(See “Eye On Valley’s School Board Races,” Michael Olohan, Oct. 23, 2023, Pascack Press.)
In an uncontested Park Ridge school board race, Rachel Browne, (1,458 votes) Natalie Agoos, (1,362 votes) and Robert A. FIsher (1,341 votes) were on the ballot for three seats.
In a contested River Vale BOE race, incumbents Patrice Pintarelli, (1,603 votes) Steven Rosini, (1,597 votes) and Jamie Assor, (1,385 votes) faced a challenge from newcomer Glenn Pagano (1,010 votes).
Rosini, Pintarelli and Assor told us of their efforts in a statement before the election. “We have been privileged to work together on the River Vale Board of Education. Through our efforts we have helped to provide a high quality education for the students as well as provide renovated and comfortable facilities for the children, staff and community to enjoy.”
Moreover, a public referendum to appropriate $230,000 annually as part of the district tax levy for three new armed guards at local schools was defeated 1,184 to 1,024, or 54% to 46%. Months ago, a split board voted to go to referendum on the issue, which had been discussed over several years.
Four candidates gave voters a choice for the two open seats on Woodcliff Lake Board of Education. Snagging the top two spots were Lysbeth Espinosa (844 votes) and Kristan Saks, (782 votes), followed by Allison Stein-Jackter (758 votes) and Elizabeth Sagat (554 votes).
